Fighting legionella: 42nd BlmSchV regulates obligations for the installation and operation of evaporative cooling systems
21. August 2017
The 42nd Federal Immission Control Ordinance (BImSchV) came into force on August 19, 2017. It regulates the technical and organizational obligations for the construction and operation of evaporative cooling systems, cooling towers and wet separators.
The 42nd BlmSchV is important from a hygiene law perspective. Under certain conditions, evaporative cooling systems can emit water droplets containing legionella (aerosols), which can lead to serious lung diseases if inhaled. Violations of the 42nd BlmSchV can now even result in criminal prosecution.
The aim of the ordinance is to create a uniform national legal regulation to prevent legionella outbreaks such as those that have occurred in the past. The ordinance thus supplements VDI Guideline 2047, Sheet 2, which has been in force since January 2015.
The 42nd BlmSchV regulates, among other things:
- certain specifications for the installation of the systems to prevent the growth of microorganisms such as legionella
- Carrying out regular inspections of the systems and microbiological laboratory tests of the process water
- Taking measures to prevent hazards if certain test or action values are exceeded (e.g. use of biocides)
- Obligation to document these measures in the company logbook
- Notification obligation for commissioning, modification or decommissioning
In this context, please also note our training courses on the VDI 2047-2 guideline (VDI cooling tower rule).
